Survey of Industry-linked Engineering Institutes - Rajarambapu ...

Case Study
Supporting and facilitating
innovation
PSG College of Technology
Innovation helps mobilise capability,
harness creativity, create value and drive
growth. Supporting innovation involves
not only encouraging entrepreneurial
activity but also maintaining mutually
beneficial interaction with industry. It
enables students and faculty to access
market expertise and ensures that their
research is academically relevant, can
be leveraged commercially through
technology transfers, and is secured
through patenting. The ability of a college
to support and facilitate innovation
can be measured through three major
channels—by the number of companies
that provide financial support to
research cells and development centres,
the number of companies that provide
mentoring, teaching support and
research collaboration and the number
of industry-sponsored research projects
assigned to the institute.
Among the top seven colleges surveyed,
PSG College of Technology holds
the record for the highest number of
companies funding and mentoring its
faculty and students. Between 2007
and 2012, as many as 22 companies
provided entrepreneurial support through
either funding or mentoring incubatees.
Additionally, during the same period, the
industry financially supported 23 of the
college’s research centres and units. The
funding is always project-specific and a
majority of it flows through the Centre for
Sponsored Research. This was established
in 1989 and serves as the vital link
between the industry and the college. As
a result of this interaction with industry,
60 research projects were assigned to the
college between 2007 and 2012.
In an effort to provide an atmosphere
conducive to innovation and
entrepreneurship, the college established
PSG-STEP (Science and Technology
Entrepreneurial Park) in collaboration
with the National Science and Technology
Entrepreneurship Development
Board (NSTEDB) in 1984. In addition
to infrastructural support, the park
offers students a complete range of
incubation facilities, including specialised
mechanical, IT and electronics incubation
centres to help formulate business plans
and develop prototypes. Since it was
established, STEP has incubated 79
entrepreneurs and currently supports 28.
Another testimony to the industry’s
acknowledgement of the institute’s
innovation capabilities is the fact that the
college was approached by the Society
for Bio-Medical Technology (SBMT) in
2003 to build a prototype of a ventilator
that could be used at high altitudes.
With inputs from the National Institute
for Mental Health and Neuro Sciences
(NIMHANS), Bangalore, PSG modified
and improved the existing prototype, and
in 2007, developed an indigenous critical
healthcare ventilator— Inventa—designed
to meet the needs of the Indian healthcare
system. Once Inventa was approved for
medical use, the technology transfer was
made to Pricol Medical Systems. Inventa
is currently awaiting a patent. Based on its
success with Inventa, the college is now
working with industry experts to develop
pediatric ventilators.
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PwC